Coaches Lead the Way for Conference Title Teams

Aug. 21,2015
By ANDY SROKA
KEVIN GUY, Arizona Rattlers
Arizona’s head coach, Kevin Guy, has helmed one of the great dynasties in Arena Football’s history. The Rattlers have won 10 straight playoff games including three consecutive ArenaBowls. He has the reputation for being a hard-nosed coach, but you can’t knock the method, especially when the results speak for themselves. And by all accounts, he’s earned the trust of his veterans, the same ones who have returned to Phoenix year after year. Players want to perform under the tutelage of the proven play caller Guy. Talents like Rod Windsor, Marquis Floyd, Anttaj Hawthorne, Marcus Pittman and Nick Davila have all spent most, if not all, of their careers with Guy on their sidelines.
He’s also shown he can recruit. With the additions of fullback Mykel Benson and the jack-of-all-trades AJ Cruz (now gone to the NFL), Guy knows every season is different, and he constructs his team around that mindset. It keeps working.
What they’re saying: Guy said this in his post-game press conference after last week’s playoff win: "Traditionally we always kind of start slow in the first round. I was proud of the guys to find a way to overcome it. We were down 14 to nothing. I thought we showed some impressive resilience. "
In a way, this quote really embodies this season for Arizona. The Rattlers haven’t looked quite the same as year’s past, whether it’s been the Davila injury or genuine wear and tear, who’s to say. But Guy won’t accept anything but excellence this weekend, especially against San Jose.
What’s on the line: For Guy, it’s an even bigger legacy. A fourth straight championship is a feat unheard of across all of sports. He needs to down the 17-1 SaberCats first.
LES MOSS, Jacksonville Sharks
The Jacksonville Sharks have only known Les Moss; Les Moss has only known the Jacksonville Sharks. It’s been a happy marriage. Some ups, some downs, sure. But these two work well together. After a subpar 2014, Moss knew the Sharks needed help and did he ever go out and get some. Moss landed the biggest fish in the offseason’s talent pool over the winter, signing impact stars Derrick Ross, Moqut Ruffins, Tiger Jones, Joe Hills, Greg Reid, Alvin Ray Jackson, Tommy Grady, and record-breaking defensive end Joe Sykes. Among those on that list, Ross, Ruffins and Jones made the First Team All-Arena Offense, while Hills made the Second Team and Reid, Jackson and Sykes earned First Team All-Arena Defense honors. It’s an exhaustive list and the season-long grind has not come without some turbulence, but they’re here. They’re back in the American Conference Championship.
The hodgepodge of gifted talent that showed up on day one needed time to jell, and only an excellent coach like Moss could steer through a 1-5 start and get them to this point in the season.
What they’re saying: Moss said this before last week’s win over the Predators to Don Coble of The Florida Times-Union: “… You have to learn from the mistakes you made that cost you games in the regular season. This is a learning process. Once you get in the playoffs, hopefully all that comes together and it clicks. That’s when the magic happens.”
They’re ready now.
What’s on the line: Many believe the route to a championship isn’t necessarily cherry picking all the top-tier talent available in the offseason. For two months, those critics were right. But Moss has the Sharks playing as good as ever, vying their second ArenaBowl berth in franchise history after a historically slow start. 
CLINT DOLEZEL, Philadelphia Soul
Clint Dolezel’s was promoted to the head coach of the Soul prior to the 2013 season after serving as the team’s offensive coordinator in 2012. He took his quarterback, Dan Raudabaugh, and the Soul to the ArenaBowl in his first season with the team but eventually lost to the Rattlers. Last year, at 9-9, they lost in the quarterfinals to Cleveland. In the offseason, they lost Tiger Jones and Derrick Ross, two of the cornerstones of their offense. So there wasn’t a ton of optimism after a .500 finish and what felt like a gaping hole in their depth chart heading into this year. But Dolezel picked up some under-the-radar talent of his own in fullback Tommy Taggart and wide receiver Shaun Kauleinamoku and the odds-on MVP Raudabaugh has made it work. Dolezel and the Soul have marched to a 15-3 record, matching the most regular-season wins in franchise history. Dolezel has been one of Raudabaugh’s biggest believers since he entered this League in Dallas where Dolezel served as the Vigilantes’ head coach. He was responsible for bringing him over in 2012 and now the two are staring at another shot at an ArenaBowl and an MVP award.
Dolezel chartered Raudabaugh and the Philly offense to home-field advantage in the American Conference, the site of their only win over the Sharks this season. Dolezel has been in this spot before, now they just want to finish the job.
What they’re saying: Ahead of their meeting with the Sharks on Sunday, Dolezel has this to say to Matt Leon of CBS Philly: “We had both games in hand if we just sealed the deal and we couldn’t get it done. We didn’t like how they kind of rubbed our nose in it after the game, either. So, yeah, I don’t know if you want to say revenge, but we will definitely be up for this football game.”
As if Sunday’s game wasn’t big enough, Philly’s head coach revved the engine a little bit more.
What’s on the line: Since their first year in the League in 2004, the Soul have missed the playoffs just three times. They won it all once in 2008, but have lost their only two ArenaBowls since. Dolezel’s Soul will want to avoid being dubbed the team that can’t get it done.
DARREN ARBET, San Jose Sabercats
The longest-tenured head coach of the lot is back in the National Conference Championship in an all-too-familiar spot against the Rattlers. This year is a little different, though, the SaberCats put together one of the best regular seasons in AFL history finishing 17-1 and averaging the largest margin of victory (22.2) of all-time. Failing to defeat the Rattlers in three straight postseasons pushed Arbet to go out and get Erik Meyer this past offseason, the real deal at quarterback. Week in and out, Arbet fielded one of the best defenses Arena Football has ever seen while he monitored Meyer as he led one of the most efficient offenses in the League. The offense is mechanical and the defense is big and bad. But his biggest acquisition may have been coach Terry Malley. Arbet has attributed much of his head-coaching success in the past to Malley, so when Malley left to coach at San Jose State University in 2009, it left a hole in their front office and on-field staff. With the duo of Arbet and Malley back at it, you wonder if that’s what the SaberCats have been missing since 2007, their last ArenaBowl victory.
In his 15 years at San Jose, Arbet has largely kept a low profile; he’s a mild-mannered head coach that lets his on-field product do the talking. With an 18-1 squad behind him, Arbet is ready to make a loud statement on Saturday.
What they’re saying: Arbet had nothing but good things to say about the Rattlers the last time these two played in Week 19 to Matt Schwab of the San Jose Mercury News: “… The thing I like about it more than the talent is their focus and their drive and their work ethic, and they just come every day and play as hard as they can play.”
That’s how San Jose’s coach works. There are no veiled criticisms of his opposition. He’s too focused on his own squad. If the SaberCats perform well, he’s happy. It’s simple.
What’s on the line: It really feels as if it’s now or never for the SaberCats. Everyone on this team is playing at a high level and their biggest obstacles, Nick Davila and the Rattlers, somewhat staggered into the postseason. Swallowing another loss this late into the year to their biggest rivals is a tough ask for these players and this fan base.